Right as Rain
by meex83
Summary: Bella would like nothing more than to stay holed up reading in her apartment but when she is persauded into going to a frat party with Alice, her night turns into one of her worst nightmares.
1. Chapter 1

It was such a nice day outside. Maybe I could wait her out. I glanced up at towards our apartment and saw her staring at me. I couldn't make out her features. Just a small pale face surrounded by dark spiky hair.

"Shit." She was waiting for me. I figured that by the time I got back from running my errands which included grocery shopping, picking some books up from the library and dropping some packages off at the post office, she'd be gone already. Imagine my surprise when I saw her little yellow car still parked at our complex.

Running my fingers through my new short locks I took a deep breath and headed up to face her talking aloud to myself. "Stand firm Bella. Don't let her coerce you into doing anything you don't want to do".

As soon as I walked through the door, there she was, hand her hip staring me down. "Thought you could run and hide did you?" She was already dressed for the day in a short denim mini skirt and long sleeved pink shirt.

"Shorty, what are you talking about?" I played stupid and walked right past her into the kitchen to put the groceries away. She followed me in plopping herself onto the countertop.

"You are coming with me tonight."

I finished putting the food away before answering. "No. No I'm not. You have a good time though." I kissed her right cheek and strode into my bedroom feeling very proud of myself.

When I heard the door open right back up, I rolled my eyes and sighed. She didn't give up easily did she?

She flipped on the radio and started bopping her head to Beyonce's "Single Ladies" before turning to my closet.

"Bella, come on. I refuse to let you stay holed up in this apartment again this year. You need to get out and meet people," Alice proclaimed while rummaging through my closet looking for the "perfect outfit".

I flopped down on my bed and tried to think of a way to get out of going. Since it was the beginning of the school year, our sophomore year, I really couldn't use studying as an excuse yet. It's not that I didn't like hanging out with Alice, it's just that some of the situations she put me in made me completely uncomfortable.

She managed to drag me to a few parties freshmen year. It was awkward every single time. I don't drink and when you're surrounded by a bunch of drunken college students who tended to dry hump anything in sight, it's not the best situation. Funny but still kind of uncomfortable.

I'll never forget the last party we went to accompanied by Angela Webber and Rosalie Hale.

_The night didn't start off bad at all. The 4 of us were hanging around one of the beer pong tables setup in the dining room at one of the many frat houses around campus. Angela and Rosalie were both nursing Screwdrivers while Alice and I sipped on Coke. I got through 3 of them before I felt the effects.  
_

_I ended up having to pee but had no idea where the bathroom was. I started wondering around looking for an available toilet. I got smacked in the ass hard 3 times by unidentified frat boys and was fuming. It was too dark to find out who the perpetrators were so I tried to protect my ass with my hands as I quickly made my way through the crowd._

_I wasn't sure if my night could get any worse. I was about to pee my pants and would probably have bruises on my ass from being hit. I thought I saw what looked like a bathroom and made my way towards it. I wished I had just pissed my pants. It would have been so much better than what really happened. Which was coming across Lauren Mallory blowing Tyler Crowley in dark corner outside the living room._

_Alice and I had both gone to high school with them and it was not the first time, I caught them screwing around. I shuddered at the memory of catching Tyler going down on Lauren in the Sci-Fi section in our school library. What the hell is it with those two and public sex?!_

_I gasped and they both stopped what they were doing to look at me._

_"Hey Bella," Tyler slurred._

_Lauren leered at me for a half second longer before going back to Tyler's crotch. At least the bitch was dedicated._

_His head fell back against the wall and his hands gripped Lauren's head as he pumped into her mouth._

_Forgetting I had to pee, I ran out of the house shoving and pushing people out of my way. I'm not prude but fuck, give me a break. Going down on a guy in the middle of a party is just foul. Especially when you know the dumbasses._

_I heard Alice call out to me from the beer pong table. "Bella where are you going?" She ran over to me. In my stupefied state, the only thing that came to mind was "IjustsawLaurenblowingTylerEWWIhavetogonow." I walked 9 blocks home trying to get the image out of my head._

That was the last time I agreed to go to any parties with Alice. She had tried just about every technique to get me to give in, whether it be blackmail, bribery or good old fashioned begging.

While she continued to go through the closet debating with herself on what I should wear, I buried my nose in Pride and Prejudice making no move whatsoever to change out of my sweats and tank top. I hoped she got the point and left me alone.

Unfortunately for me this was not the case. She emerged from my closet and in her arms was a set of clothing consisting of distressed denim jeans and a blue short sleeved shirt from Abercrombie and Fitch, no doubt purchased by her and snuck into my closet.

"For you." She tossed them onto my bed.

"For what?"

"You're coming with me tonight Bella. There is a boy I want you meet. He's in my art class and he's soo cute and soo your type I just know it. He said he was coming tonight and he's bringing his brother and his friend. And you need to get out of this apartment. Your turning into a hermit and the year has barely started. I cannot allow another year of this. I just can't. I'm putting you check."

It all came out in a rush.

I should've known she would give up until she got her way. I closed my book. It was a valiant effort but deep down I knew she'd win. "Fine. I'll go. Now leave."

She smiled and started walking out. "I've got the shoes for your outfit in my room".

Grudgingly, I got off the bed and got dressed. 20 minutes later my hair was straightened and we were out the door.

When we arrived at the apartment complex, it wasn't just one of the units throwing a party, it was the whole floor. People flowed in and out of one unit and into another.

Being the social butterfly that she is, she introduced me to a slew of people. He was one of these people. I first saw him from across the room in apartment 1C. I'll never forget the way my heart sped up when I first set eyes on him. Beautiful.

From what I could tell he was about a foot taller than me and lanky with a head full of wild bronze hair. That was all I could make out because then he saw me staring at him and I quickly looked away blushing at having been caught.

I tried to by sly and sneak another look while taking a sip of my Coke. When I looked, he was heading straight towards me. My breathing hitched as he approached. What was he coming over here for? Probably to tell me to stop staring at him. Oh my God, I'm soo embarrassed.

He was about 5 feet away from me when I heard Alice by my side. "Edward! I'm so glad you came." He grinned at her showing a row of perfectly white teeth. Geez, even his teeth are sexy."Hey Alice. Good to see you." He was speaking to her but still eyeing me.

My face felt extremely hot and I was unable to speak. Alice eyed me warily. "This is my friend Bella. She's shy. Your shy. You guys should totally talk." With that little setup, she was off.

I stood their staring anywhere but at him a complete mute. "So Bella, it's nice to finally meet you. Alice talks about you all the time." I nodded. Why couldn't I speak? This is ridiculous. I gathered the saliva in my mouth and tried again meeting his eyes. His glorious green eyes. "So, Edward, are you an Art major?" He smiled at me and I could smell his peppermint scented breath. Very nice.

"No, I'm actually pre-med. The art class is required for my program."

"Hey Edward!" A loud voice called out from across the room. We both snapped our heads towards the voice. There was a mammoth of a man with curly black hair by the keg waving Edward over.

Edward grinned. "That's my brother Emmett. He's probably a little drunk right now. I should go see what he wants. Stay right here?"

I bit my lip and nodded at him shyly. I was standing there for about 2 minutes when I noticed a girl approach Edward and wrap her arms around him. I didn't stay to see what happened next. With my luck, I'd have to witness a full make out session or worse. I knew it was ridiculous but I felt a tear slide down my left cheek. I felt stupid. I barely even knew him. Inhaling and exhaling quickly, I turned away determined not to let it ruin my night.

Iwiped the solitary tear away and left the apartment. I scanned the crown for Alice but she was nowhere to be found. I decided to try my luck at one of the other units. I ended up in Apartment 1J. The music seemed to be even louder here. Lil' Wayne's "Go DJ" was being blasted from speakers surrounding the living room floor. I checked time on my cell. It was only 10pm. Not seeing any familiar faces, I made my way to the makeshift bar looking for something non-alcoholic. Digging through the cooler, I pulled out a water and sipped on it while looking for somewhere to sit.

Not paying attention, I bumped into someone effectively spilling my water on the carpet. "Oops, I'm sorry. I'm such a klutz". I reached down to grab the now empty bottle. When I came back up to face whoever I bumped into, a guy with short blond hair stood before me. "Sorry again." I tried walking away but he grabbed my wrist. "Hey, wait a minute. What's your name?"

"Um, Bella."

"I'm James. Are you knew around here? I didn't see you at any of the parties last year?"

I giggled nervously. "No, I'm a sophomore. I just don't get out to often."

His expression changed from amused to somthing I couldn't quite decipher. It put me on edge but I shook it off.

"Let me get you another drink. Whaddya want?"

I didn't like the way he was looking at me but again I shook it off. 'Bella stop being so paranoid. This is exactly why you need to get out more.'

" Do you know if they have any soda around?"

He nodded and walked off quickly. I noticed a table full of nachos next to me and reached down for one. It took a second but my mouth started burning. It was then that he returned with a red cup full of the cool liquid. I quickly took it from him and chugged it down, my throat instantly soothed. He watched me the whole time with an odd expression in his eyes.

"Thanks. I really needed that. I didn't realize there were soo many jalepenos under the cheese.

"Not a problem Bella. It was then that I was bumped into and almost knocked over by a group of rowdy guys. James caught me before I fell." You wanna sit down or somthing?"

"Yea, I probably should before I trip and spill this too."

He led me to a ratty brown couch against the wall. He sat beside me not saying much as I continued sipping my drink. It may have been the loud music or smoke from the cigarettes in the room but I started feeling really naseous and dizzy.

I groaned and he looked over at me. "You ok?"

"Mmm...no. I think I need to leave. I think the smoke is making me sick." I stood up feeling very wobbly but managed to stay upright. I tried calling her on my cell phone but it went straight to voicemail. "I need to find Alice."

I started walking towards the door of the apartment when I felt his arm around my shoulder leading me. I looked at him uncomfortably. I didn't want his arm around me. "Don't want you fall Bella. I'll help you find Alice." He led us back out into the hallway still crowded with people. My vision was fuzzy but not so fuzzy that I didn't see him leading me out of the apartment building.

I tried to protest slowing my steps but he tightend his grip on me. "James, Alice is still in the building somewhere. I don't need to go outside." I tried removing his arm from my shoulder but he held me close to him in a painful embrace. He whispered in my ear. "I think you need to just the fuck up." I felt the fear creep up practically immobilize me as he continued leading us to the exit.


	2. Chapter 2

I tried to scream and was just about to get it out when he pulled my face into his shoulder thus blocking anything but muffled noise to come forth

I tried to scream and was just about to get it out when he pulled my face into his shoulder thus blocking anything but muffled noise to come forth. I tried to drag my feet but he just dragged me forward.

Why didn't anyone notice what was going on? We were surrounded by at least 30 people hanging out in the hallway. I tried getting my arms free to bring attention to myself but he was holding on much too tightly.

Reality dawned on me. With the way James was holding onto me and the way I stumbled around, people probably thought I had consumed too much alcohol and he was holding me up.

My body felt sluggish. Why couldn't I fight harder? What was wrong with me? Had I been drugged? Did he slip something into that Coke? Jesus, that had to be it.

Trying to wrap my mind around the situation, I felt myself being ushered through the exit. 'God no!'

I tried to keep my cool. If I continued to freak out, my chances of getting away diminished.

"W..w..What the hell are you doing?" He didn't answer. He only gripped my arms tighter and lead me around the back of the complex. My vision was getting blurry and the darkness of night was not helping. It looked as if the parking lot was sealed all the way around. I was caged in.

Scared to death. I wanted to scream but I couldn't seem to get one out. I wanted to run but couldn't get loose from his grip. It was then that my adrenaline decided to kick in. I started struggling as much as I could. "Get off of me".

He stopped walking and turned me so that I was facing him. "Bella, if you don't stop struggling, I will kill you. Understand?"

I tried to calm myself, to pull it together but was unsuccessful and started freaking out even more. Tears streamed down my face at the reality of the situation. I looked around for help. There was no one. Even if I was able to scream, no one would hear me over the sound of the music coming from the complex. God only knows when Alice would determine I was missing and start looking for me.

Just then my phone in purse started ringing. Rhianna's 'Umbrella' was playing. It was Alice. She was only a phone call way. If I could just get my hands loose. Just for a second.

He knew what I was thinking. Before I could even react, the purse was grabbed from my shoulder. "You won't be needing this."

I started hyperventilating. That could have been my last chance. This made him even more hostile. "Shut up." When I didn't…when I couldn't stop, I felt the blow of his fist against the right side of my head. "I said to shut the fuck up."

I hunched over instinctively trying to catch my breath. The throbbing in my head intensified. He pulled me up and then we were on the move again.

He was leading me to van parked alone at the end of the lot. Pulling the door open he shoved me inside throwing my purse in behind me. I landed awkwardly on my left wrist but didn't have time for the pain to register before the door closed and I felt him pulling me toward him, flipping me over onto my back.

I laid there for about 2 seconds too petrified to do anything. He hovered between my legs eyeing me before reaching up and trying to pull my shirt up over my head. I struggled trying to twist out of his hold. I knew I wasn't putting up much of a fight. I could barely stay coherent. The drugs were working fast.

Trapping my hands in a painful grip within his right hand, he ripped the shirt down the middle with his left. As soon as it was out of the way, he reached down and started squeezing my breast roughly through my thin bra. "P..please don't do this."

Not acknowledging my plea, he yanked the fabric down, taking my left nipple between his fingers and twisting it cruelly. I screamed from the pain and tried to fight back again. I punched, scratched and kicked at him. He laughed at every blow I landed. I could barely fight when in my right state of mind, I knew it was a lost cause considering I was drugged and couldn't even make out what I was hitting.

"Oh, Bella likes it rough huh? Hmm..I can definitely do rough". He grabbed my left wrist, bending it back until I heard a pop. A scream erupted from my throat but was quickly muffled by his hand. "That's just the beginning."

He flipped me over quickly so that I was on my belly. I felt his foot on the small of my back holding me down so I couldn't crawl away. It was then that I heard him unbuckling his belt.

Jesus Christ, this was really happening to me.

I had to find something to fight him off with. Forcing myself to focus through the pain, hazy vision, and being on the cusp of passing out, I searched the floor of the van frantically for anything in front of me.

Nothing. There was nothing.

I stretched my arms to my sides hoping for a different scenario.

Then I felt it. It was sharp and cool under my touch. I stretched my body forward trying to get to it.

I reached out and it was at the tips of my fingers. 'Just a little bit further'. I stretched again and felt the plastic handle in my grip. I held on tightly waiting to make my move and hoping to God I didn't pass out.

A small metal nail file. The same nail file my mom insisted I carry with me for protection. I thought she was crazy at the time. I mean, what was a nail file really going to do if I was attacked?

I held it tightly in my right hand. I was about to find out.

Thankfully because it was so dark in the van, James didn't see me gripping anything.

I had to wait for him to get closer. He didn't. He continued to stand over me and began speaking.

"You know Bella, I watched you all last semester. You never seemed like the kind of girl that would just give what I wanted so I decided I was going to take it. You should know that about me. When I want something, I get it. No matter what." He emphasized his point by pressing down onto my back painfully with is boots.

It wasn't until I groaned out in pain that he eased up and continued speaking.

"I saw you for the first time in the library. You were so cute absorbed in a book. So innocent looking. You didn't even notice me. That pissed me off Bella. I looked for you at parties but never saw you out. I told myself that when I saw you again, that would be it. I was going to have you whether you wanted it or not."

He flipped me over and squeezed my breast again. Dropping his hands below my waist, I felt his hands rubbing me through my jeans and almost vomited. "I'm gonna enjoy this so fucking much. You don't know how long I waited for the goddamn drugs to work." He chuckled to himself. "You're going to love this."

His hands and eyes were focused on unbuttoning and unzipping my jeans. I made my move. Reaching up, I stuck the file into an area on his upper back.

"Aaah! You fucking bitch! What the f.."

I didn't wait to strike again pulling the tool out and stabbing it right back repeatedly in around the same area. He rolled off of me screaming profanities. I crawled over him and struggled to get the door open. 'Where's the handle. Where's the damn handle'. I knew I didn't have much time. I'm sure the file hurt him but it was probably more of a shock to his system than anything else. He would be back up soon.

I felt around blindly knowing he could get up at any second. I knew that if that happened, I wouldn't get a second chance.

Finally, my hand found the curved metal handle. I pulled it up and felt the door give. I slid out and tumbled to the ground. It took everything I had to get back on my feet and start moving. I didn't know how long I had before he'd catch up with me.

My vision was unclear not only from the drugs but I think from the blow to my head as well. I stumbled through the parking lot towards the music. If I could just get to complex, I'd be safe. The music got louder and louder. I was getting closer.

Then I heard someone call my name from across the parking lot.

"Bella?"

My head snapped towards the direction of the voice. 'James.' It had to be him. Tears streamed from my eyes. I couldn't fight anymore. My body was done. I slumped to the ground and tried crawling toward the complex. I felt myself slipping into an unconscious state. This was it.

Where was Alice? Where was Rose? Why didn't anyone come for me?

I was soo close. Soo close to the building I could taste it.

I heard feet running towards me. The felt someone lifting my body from the ground. I tried pleading with him. "Please don't hurt me anymore." The voice yelled for someone to call an ambulance.

"Bella, its Edward. I'm not gonna hurt you. Your safe. Just stay with me. I'm not gonna let anybody hurt you". His voice sounded pained.

Then I heard Alice. She was crying out to me. "Bella! Oh God! What happened?! Oh Bella I'm soo sorry"

I forced my eyes open. I wanted to tell her I was ok but I couldn't get any words to form. So I tried to smile at her, to ease her worry but I'm sure it came out more as a grimace. I know that's what it felt like to me.

My eyes closed again and I started to slip into unconsciousness again. But he brought me out again. "Bella, you need to stay awake. Listen to me. Listen to my voice. Stay with me."

He sounded like an angel. Oh God…was I dead?

No, I decided. There wouldn't be ambulance sirens in Heaven right?

I was laid on a flat surface and felt myself being lifted up into the ambulance. Their were people all around now. I couldn't see them, but I could feel them. Two sets of hands held onto mine. One who I knew was Alice. The other, Edward. If he hadn't come along, I'd be getting raped and beaten to death by James right now.

I heard someone telling Alice and the man they couldn't ride with me to the hospital. I cried out. "Don't go. Please don't go." I gripped both their hands tighter refusing to let go. Soon, the paramedic relented and allowed them both to enter. Neither set of hands ever let go of mine.


	3. Chapter 3

Hi Everyone. Thanks for the reviews! I'm glad you all like the story. I decided to write Chapter 3 from Edward's perspective.

Disclaimer: These are Stephanie's characters. I'm just playing with them.

"What do you want Emmett". I ran my hands through my hair, irritated about having to leave Bella but I didn't want my big doofus of a brother scaring her off. Alice had told me about her last semester during our art classes on Mondays and Wednesdays. She went on and on about her best friend intriguing me more every day.

I knew quite a bit about her whether Alice knew it or not. Everything she told me I remembered and put away in the Bella Swan vault in my mind. From the shampoo Bella liked to use (Herbal Essences), to how stringent she was about spending money (she didn't have a lot growing up and was very cautious on how she spent her money which she earned as by working 2 jobs, one in a library the other babysitting) , right down to her shoe size (which was 7.5)

Thank God Alice didn't know how obsessed I was with her friend. I behaved as if I was nonchalant regarding the whole situation.

I think I may have fallen for the girl before I even met her. I was desperate to finally have a face to face. My plans had been thwarted last semester as Bella took some time off to care for her Father who was injured at work.

I had seen her out and about with Alice on a few occasions but kept my distance. What if I said something completely off hand and scared her away? I was tactful but I wasn't so sure about myself when it came to her.

Knowing how I felt about her, the conversation may have started off with, "Hello, my name is Edward. I know we've never met before but I'm pretty sure I'm in love with you. Run away with me."

In my mind, she always came but I doubt this would have been the case anywhere other than in my mind

So I waited on the sidelines for the perfect opportunity to introduce myself.

Alice had called me this morning to let me know Bella was coming this party tonight with her and that I'd had better be there. Of course I was going to be there! Now all I had to do was check on my brother and make my exit.

Emmett's lound chuckle bought me back to the present.

"Aw Eddie, there is sooo much fine pussy in the house toniiiiiightttttttt!"

I raised my eyebrows and nodded at my overexcited older brother.

He was a bit much when sober. When he was drunk all bets were off.

He was a very happy person most of the time but when he was drunk…he was ecstatic about EVERYTHING.

The last time he was swerved off the juice, we were watching the Bourne Identity. Halfway through the movie, Emmett decided that Matt Damon had a crush on him. Told me _"The dude obviously wants me…look at the way he keeps winking at me." _

Being the good brother that I am, I nodded my head in agreement with him and offered him another shot of Patron.

Emmett grinned at me over the top of his cup. He finished downing the beverage before speaking. "Having a good time Edward?"

I nodded slowly rotating my head to look back to Bella when I felt two arms embrace my waist. I knew it was too good to be true for it to be her and I was right.

Jessica smiled drunkenly up at me. "Edward. I have been looking all over for you. Why didn't you ever call me?"

I rolled my eyes and groaned. Once. I had taken her out once.

Now that she was here, I could unfortunately remember it like it was just yesterday.

_When I picked her up, she seemed nice enough. "You can call me Jess, Edward" _

_I had taken her out to this pizza place on campus called Papa Pizza. She was rude to the waitress who was a very nice girl that I had an anatomy class with named Angela. _

"_I want a Root Beer with no ice. Try not to screw it up this time again."_

_Angela had simply nodded at her and turned to me. _

_I smiled warmly at her and ordered a Sprite making sure to say thank you afterward. _

_I should have taken that as a sign that this night was going to go downhill fast. Jessica griped about any and everything. _

"_The pizza is too hot…Ugh, these bread sticks are too oily…Why is my soda soo flat…" It went on and on. The pizza was perfect as were the bread sticks. I asked her if she wanted to change to another beverage but she declined. "Ugh, I guess I'll just deal with it." _

_The worst part was that she voiced all her complaints to Angela, barking at the poor girl every time she came to check on us. I felt so bad abut Jessica's behavior that I left Angela a $50 tip. _

_It was evident we had zilch I common. I decided to end the nigh on a good note and just take her back to her dorm. _

"_Thanks for coming out tonight Jessica. It was nice meeting you." Just because she couldn't be polite didn't mean I had to have the same manners. _

_She giggled coyly. "It was nice meeting you too Edward. I had a really good time." She leaned in as if she was going to kiss me. _

_Cringing, I turned quickly kissing her on the cheek. She pulled back looking confused then determined. I thought it was more than enough. Damn, I was planning on just shaking her hand and peeling out._

_She moved closer leaning over the center console. I thought she might try to kiss me again and braced myself to duck out of the way. _

_She surprised me by quickly descending down my body and laying her head on my lap. Her hands were working on my belt._

_What the hell? Is she seriously trying to blow me? _

_I wondered if that's how they said "Thank You" where she was from._

_Hmm…I wonder what'd she do if I bought her a Happy Meal. _

_I thought about letting her do it for a good ten seconds. Seriously, what single guy passes up the opportunity to get his dick sucked?_

_Ugh. I did. This was wrong. This girl was revolting._

"_Ok Jess, you gotta get up."_

_I promptly removed her head from my lap, got out of the car and went to the passenger side. She looked at me confused as I held the door open for her. _

"_Are you serious"_

_Biting my lip, I nodded. _

"_Yes, you need to go."_

_She still wouldn't move. I stood there holding the door of the Volvo open wondering why the hell she wasn't getting out. _

"_You have no idea what your missing Cullen." What she did seriously surprised me although it probably shouldn't have considering her behavior tonight. _

_She swung both of her legs out of the car so that she was facing me. She was still sitting in the passenger seat when she leaned back, hiking her skirt up and spreading her legs. No panties. _

_I think my jaw hit the ground. _

_Was she serious?_

"_C'mere Edward. I know you want to."_

_Well, yea, I wanted to…just not with her. _

_I reached into the car and pulled her out setting her on her feet. She stood there, mouth gaped open like a fish._

_I pursed my lips and shrugged. "You really shouldn't show your snatch on the first date Jess."_

_I got back into the car making a mental note to have the passenger seat sanitized, threw her the peace sign and rolled out. _

That was towards the beginning of last semester and I had avoided her like an STD. But now here she was in all her sloppily drunk glory.

She continued to gaze at me with a look I'm sure she thought was alluring but to me it just looked like she was constipated.

I gave her a meaningful look. "Have another drink Jess." I pulled her arms away from my waist to make my escape.

Making my way back to Bella, I noticed she wasn't in the spot I left her in. I did a quick sweep of the room, even waiting by the bathroom to see if she was in there. Sighing heavily, I checked the halls. Still no Bella.

'Where did she go?'

Seeing Alice come out of one the apartments talking with a tall blond guy, I approached her. Maybe she knew where Bella had gone.

She was giggling at something he was whispering in her ear when she saw me. "Hi Edward." She looked around me. "Where's Bella?"

I shrugged. "I thought you could help me with that. I'm not sure where she went. I turned my back for a second and she was gone."

Alice rolled her eyes and sighed. "I bet she went home. She didn't really want to come tonight." She turned to the man. "Jazz will you take me by the apartment so I can bring Bella back and chew her out for leaving and not telling anybody?"

Jazz nodded and smiled sweetly at her.

"I'll stay here and look around. She could just be in another one of the apartments."

She nodded and started dragging Jazz away before she turned back quickly. "I'm sorry. Jasper this is Edward. Edward this is Jasper." We nodded at each other before Alice grabbed his arm leading him off into the night.

I snickered to myself. Crazy girl.

Walking off, I continued my search for Bella.

I got through searching 4 of the apartments when I got a call from Alice. I smiled thinking she had found her and was dragging her back to the party.

Pressing send, I expected to hear Alice's chipper voice chirping away in victory of having found Bella.

That is not at all what I got. She sounded frantic as she started speaking before I even said hello.

"Edward?"

I could barely make out her voice over the noise.

"Alice, can you hear me?"

"She's not at the apartment. We're on our way back now. This isn't like her Edward. Even when she pissed about something, she still answers her phone." I heard Alice take a deep breath before continuing. "Why isn't she answering her phone?"

"Alice calm down. I'm sure she's fine. She probably can't hear her phone ringing over the noise here."

I moved to the side of the wall as a group of girls drunkenly made their way through.

"I'm sure she's still here. I haven't finished searching the apartments yet."

The phone went silent for a moment. Then I heard her wailing. "No! Something is wrong! I can feel it. Something is wrong with Bella!"

I heard Jasper in the background trying to soothe her.

"I'll find her Alice. You have to try to calm down. It'll be ok."

She hiccupped, trying to get herself under control. "Find her Edward."

Then the phone went dead. I scrubbed my face with my hand and started going into the next apartment when I felt someone grab me. Turning to face them I recognized a guy from my calculus class, Eric.

"Edward! How's it goin' man? Hook up with any honey's yet?"

Chuckling lightly, I shook my head no. "Uh, no, not tonight. Hey, do you know Bella Swan?"

Confusion furrowed his brow.

Trying to clarify, I tried to describe her. "She's about 5'3", short brown hair, brown eyse, she's friends with Alice Brandon…"

A smile lit up his face as realization dawned on him. "Yea, sure I know Bella. She's hot man! You trying to hit that?"

I ignored him, trying to press for more information.

"Listen to me Eric. Have you seen her tonight?"

He stood there for a moment thinking.

"Yea man. I saw her like maybe 20 minutes ago."

"Saw her where?"

"She was leaving with some guy. She looked WASTED man!"

I paused for a moment. Ok, now it was time to worry. Alice told me she and Bella didn't drink. At all. Ever. She couldn't have been drunk. What the hell was going? And who was the guy?

"Which way did she go? Who was she with?"

"Dude, I don't know. Some other dude." Pointing to the entrance to the complex, "He took her out there."

I ran out the door leading to the back of the complex but did not see her. Alice and Jasper pulled up his truck. She caught my eyes and knew something was up. Racing out of the car she fired off questions. "Did you find her? Has anyone seen her?"

I held my hands out in front of me motioning for her to calm down. We didn't have time to waste. I had to explain quickly.

"Someone saw her leave with a guy. They said they saw her come out through that door." I motioned to the back exit. "You guys check the front of the building, I'll check back here."

Jasper and Alice ran off. I made my way across the dark parking lot looking for anything out of the ordinary.

"Bella."

I knew she probably wouldn't hear me over the music but I tried calling out to her anyway.

I caught motion with peripheral vision. I focused my eyes and saw a figure of someone. They seemed to be stumbling toward the complex.

"Hey." No answer.

Approaching the figure, I was about to yell out again when I recognized her. I couldn't make out all her features but I could see it was Bella.

"Bella!"

Her head turned in my direction. I smiled hugely relieved to have found her. Jogging over to approach her, fear gripped me once again. She didn't look right. This situation wasn't right. My jog turned into a run. Before I could reach her she fell to the ground.

When I finally got to her, I swear it felt like my heart literally stopped. I took out my cell phone to use as a light.

I stopped breathing. "Jesus Christ…"

For a second, all I could do was stare at her, unable to believe it was really her in front of me. It couldn't be her.

Bella didn't have bruises on her face. Bella wouldn't have been stumbling around a dark parking topless with contusions marring her chest chest. No, this wasn't her.

Bella was in the library curled up in a chair reading a Jane Austin book. Yes, that's where she was. Perhaps Mansfield Park? No. No, she was reading Pride and Prejudice. Alice told me she reads Pride and Prejudice over and over again. She was curled up nice and warm and safe lost in her book. Yes, that's exactly where she was.

This is the vision I tried to flood my head with.

This was the vision I'd desperately wanted to be true.

I didn't want her lying on the ground in front of me broken. She was broken…Someone had broken her.

Quickly clearing my head and wiping my eyes of moisture, I picked her up as gently as I could. As soon as I touched her she whimpered.

"Please don't hurt me anymore."

Once again, I was at a loss. My eyes flooded, my body felt weak.

I was at the party the whole time. How could I have not have known what was going on. Why didn't I find her sooner? God, why did I leave her alone?

"Oh Bella…" My voice was choked up and I pushed the lump in my throat down. I had to focus on her.

Off in the distance, I heard Alice loudly calling my name.

"Alice…ambulance," I mumbled. 'Get it together Edward!' I had my phone but I refused to let her go even for a moment.

I screamed out to her. "Alice, call an ambulance!"

Bella's body cringed at the volume of my voice and she started whimpering again.

My medical training came back to me suddenly.

'Keep her awake. You have to keep her awake. '

"Bella, its Edward. I'm not gonna hurt you. You're safe. Just stay with me. I'm not gonna let anybody hurt you".

Who had done this? Who could've possibly done something like this?

I felt fury rising, boiling within every pore of my body. I wanted their blood. If it was the last thing I did, I'd find them. I would end them.

Soon I heard Alice's heels clicking rapidly against the pavement in the dark followed by the heavy thud of Jasper's boots. She took one look at Bella and started screaming.

"Bella! Oh God! What happened?! Oh Bella I'm soo sorry."

She tried brushing some of the hair out of Bella's eyes as we made our way across the parking lot to a lit area.

It was then that we noticed Bella trying to open her eyes, her face contorted into a frown then she closed them again.

"No Bella," I whispered. "Bella, you need to stay awake. Listen to me. Listen to my voice. Stay with me."

It wasn't very cold out but she was shivering. It was then I remembered she was practically naked. Naked and covered with contusions from the top of her head to her ribcage. That was only from the front. I had no idea what the back of her looked like.

I didn't want her exposed like this. Open to be seen by anyone who might pass by.

"Alice, give me something to cover her with."

She shrugged out of her small windbreaker and wrapped it around Bella.

A minute later we heard the ambulance rounding the corner. Soon the lot was filling with the people from inside the complex coming to find out what was going on.

A paramedic lifted Bella from my arms. I instantly felt empty without her but knew she needed to get to the hospital. I held onto her left hand as they placed her on the gurney also making sure the jacket stayed in place. It was then I noticed how swollen her left hand looked. Was it broken?

She didn't attempt to pull her hand free of mine and I couldn't seem to let go. I wouldn't let go. I looked up and saw Alice clinging to her right hand, whispering to her.

One of the paramedics stopped what they were doing to look at us. Shaking her head she spoke. "I'm sorry. You guys can't ride with her."

This was unacceptable.

Before Alice or I could say anything, Bella cried out. "Don't go. Please don't go." I felt her tighten her possibly broken hand around mine.

As if I was ever going to let go anyway.

The paramedic relented at seeing our solidarity.

Alice and I made our way into the ambulance, flanking Bella.

"Do either of you know what happened to her." The paramedic was moving around tending to her wounds.

I didn't want to, but I had to let go of her hand for the paramedic to work. As soon as I let go, she started crying for me.

I squatted down so I was by her head so she could hear me. "I'm right here. I'm not going anywhere." I placed a kiss on her forehead and she seemed to calm down some. "They've just got to fix you up honey."

Alice looked up at me. Something unreadable in her eyes. It was gone before I could even begin to decipher it.

It was then that she spoke up.

"No, we don't know what happened. We found her in the parking lot like this."

The paramedic started checking the contusions on her head so I went back to the side to hold her hand.

"Was she with anybody? I need you guys to tell me everything that you know."

She started applying ointment to her cuts.

"All we know right now is that some guy took her outside of the complex. We think he drugged her. Bella doesn't drink and she doesn't do drugs."

She squeezed my hand a little and tried to speak. "It hurts."

I cringed inside for her. "I know Bella. I know. It's gonna be ok though. Where does it hurt baby?"

She groaned. "Everywhere."

I grit my teeth. I felt so helpless. Looking over at Alice, I could see she felt the same way.

The ride to the hospital wasn't very long and soon we were walking through the emergency room door.

I knew someone would try to stop us from going back with her. I looked for help and received it sighing in relief as I saw one of the doctors on duty.

He spotted me before I could say anything and walked over.

"Edward, what's going on? Is everything ok?" He looked down to see Bella on the gurney.

All I could do was shake my head no and gaze down at her. "We need to go back with her."

I raised my eyes to look at him, swallowing the lump in my throat.

"Dad, I need to go back with her."

He nodded. "Of course. C'mon."

We made our way to the examination rooms, Alice and I still holding onto Bella's hands.

We had to let go of her hands once when she was lifted onto one of the beds but immediatly interlaced our fingers with hers when she was settled. It was then my dad, Dr Carlise Cullen began assessing her injuries.

Alice stared at her not saying a word. She looked completely dazed as her eyes adjusted to stair at the wall behind me.

"I should go call her Dad. Let him know what's going on. Jasper's probably outside too by now."

She brushed some of Bella's hair behind her ear and leaned in. "I'll be right back. I'm going to call Charlie but I'll be right outside."

Bella nodded her head weakly and relented on her grip on Alice's hand.

Alice got out of her seat quickly before turning back to look at Bella once more then me.

"Stay with her." It wasn't a request but a demand.

"I'm not going anywhere Alice."

She seemed satisfied with that answer and went to make the call.

I saw my dad glance down at our entwined hands but he didn't say anything until he needed to check her hand for a break.

"Edward, you have to let go of her hand."

Reluctantly, I let go but made my way to the other side of the bed to hold onto her right hand. I needed her to know I wasn't going to leave her. That I was still here.

Her grip tightened immediately when my hand met hers. I brought it to my lips kissing it lightly.

"Told you I wasn't going anywhere."


	4. Chapter 4

I was sitting on the couch watching re-runs of Bewitched with Alice and Rosalie. We had designated tonight as "Operation Relaxation." There was to be no talk of work, school or any other topic that could be deemed stressful.

Alice and Rosalie were discussing the differences between nail polish brands. Currently the agreement between Rose and Alice was that OPI was far superior to any other brand of nail polish on the market. Unfortunately, Rose had wavered in her decision on OPI and was currently leaning towards an "enemy brand" as Alice liked to call it. Sitting on the end of the couch with a bag of Cheetos, I alternated between listening to the dialogue between the two of them and that of the Samantha on the LCD television.

"Dammit Rosalie, how the hell can you think Rimmel is better than OPI? Are you effin' nuts?"

I rolled my eyes and snorted. I swear, those two were the best of friends until they got into a dispute over fashion.

Rosalie tossed her blond hair over one shoulder and began examing her nails before looking back up at Alice, her head cocked to the side. "No Alice, I'm not effin' nuts. I'm practical. Rimmel is much less expensive than OPI and just as durable if not more so."

Alice's mouth popped open and she prepared her retort. "You know what, whatever Rose. At least OPI isnt' hyped up by a coked out _former _supermodel and ew! Have you even seen her nail beds?"

I saw Rose's lips purse together in concentration. Then I saw her brow wrinkle. When I saw the left side of her mouth start the formation of a grin and her head fall forward, I knew Alice had one this battle. I zoned out as they started comparing MAC and NARS lipgloss.

Before I knew what was happening, I drifted off. My eyes snapped back open when I realized I could no longer hear Rose and Alice. The room was completely dark and I no longer felt the comfort of our plush couch under me. Muted sounds could be heard all around me and when I tried to move I realized something was holding me down.

I closed my eyes like a coward hoping that whatever was happening would be over when I reopened them. I internally tried to rationalize the situation by telling myself that my sense of foreboding dread was caused by my frequent paranoia.

"1…2…3.." I opened my eyes and stopped breathing.

"No." It came out as a whisper and my body broke into a cold sweat.

There was no way I was back in the van. James was not in front of me. He wasn't.

That was the last thought I was able to process before he pounced, pinning me to the hard floor of the van. No! This was not happening again. I got away!

I laid beneath him paralyzed in fear desperately willing my arms to move. He had one hand gripping my throat while the other worked unfastening my jeans. Finally, my body started thrashing against him.

He increased the hold on my throat and I wheezed desperate for oxygen, desperate for escape.

I heard my name being called and my shoulder's being shook.

"Bella, wake up. It's ok. C'mon wake up. Your safe now, wake up."

My eyes popped opened and I gasped for air. A white crackled ceiling was the first thing I saw. My head turned slowly to the left and there was Alice. She was curled up in the bed with me; her head was resting on the same pillow under my head. She looked exhausted. Her normally bright eyes were rimmed with red.

We stared at each other for an undetermined amount of time, not saying a word. Suddenly, her hand reached out to brush my cheek and ragged breath escaped her mouth. "I'm so sorry."

A single tear crept down her cheek followed by another then another

I held her gaze unsure of how to handle this. I went with the most generic answer.

"Al I'm ok." It came out as a croak but I felt the need to reassure her nonetheless.

My heart broke as I saw her face crumple before bringing her hands up to hide it from me.

I pursed my lips not knowing what to say to calm her down. Instead of mumbling through words of comfort, which I'm sure she wouldn't believe anyway, I raised my right hand to stroke her exposed mop of messy black hair.

"Alice, please. Please stop crying." My tongue darted out to wet my dry lips as I tried to think of a way to calm her down.

I knew I couldn't force her to stop crying and if I was being absolutely honest, I didn't have the strength to talk her through it. I didn't have the strength to talk myself through it. So I continued to lay there next to her massaging her head and waited for her to calm down.

The sunlight shining through the hospital room window was blinding but I welcomed it. I squinted against it but it was comforting. I was out of the dark. I really was safe.

A few minutes later, her body stopped jerking from the sobs and I felt her breathing slow down.

Slowly her hands came down from her face, lips still quivering. She wouldn't look me in the eyes. "You're not really ok are you?"

I think we both knew the answer to that. Most of the time, I was pretty good at putting up a front for people but not now. I wanted to lie to her again, tell her that I was fine. I wanted to hide behind humor and sarcasm. I wanted to protect my friend from my pain. But I knew I couldn't. Not when she raised her eyes to mine. Not when she wanted to know the truth.

Closing my eyes, I gave it to her straight. "I'm not ok Alice. Not right now. But I will be." That was all I could offer her at this point. I hoped it was enough. I opened my eyes again to gauge her reaction.

The bottom lip started quivering again but she nodded and settled her head back on the pillow. Then one of her tiny arms wrapped around my waist and she closed her eyes. I closed mine too but wanted to open them as soon as my lids shut. It was dark behind my eyelids, just like it was dark in the parking lot, just like it was dark in his van.

Staring up at the popcorn ceiling of this sterile room, I think I started breaking down. Words came out like vomit from my mouth before I could even edit myself. "I'm afraid of the dark now. Every time I close my eyes it's dark ya' know? When it's dark, I'm there again and I can't get away."

She didn't say anything. I'm not sure anything she said was going to help at that moment anyway.

It was quiet for a good long moment before I heard her take another deep ragged breath.

"Go back to sleep Bella. I'm here now. No one is going to hurt you again. We won't let them."

She pulled herself closer to me and until I could feel her peppermint scented breath on my cheek, her hand running soothing light circles on my back willing me to relax.

Exhaling a breath I didn't even realize I was holding, I relaxed into the pillow, held tight to Alice and was able to drift off again.

It didn't seem like I was out for very long but when I awoke again it was to a dark room. My first thought was to scream but then I saw Alice's face fast asleep next to mine. Her arm was still wrapped around my waist. My arm had fallen asleep in my current position so I tried rolling to over onto my right side. The motion was agonizing and although I tried not to, I voiced it.

"Bella?"

Two voices. Who else was in here? A light came on and I turned my head slightly to the right and there standing in front of the chair next to my bed, was Edward Cullen.

My mouth opened and remained gaped open so that I'm sure I resembled a trout.

When did he get here?

He was dressed in the same clothes he was wearing the night of the party…the night he saved me from what would have no doubt been a violent rape.

Alice yawned and removed her arm from around my waist. She and Edward stared at each other for a moment as if they were having a silent conversation. Looking between the two of them, I tried to decipher what was going on. "Bella will you be alright with Edward for a little while? I've got to make a few phone calls and they don't allow cell phones in here?"

I looked from her to him and back again nodding my head.

I nodded. She gave me a quick kiss, unraveled herself from the sheets and left.

Flashbacks of that night played quickly through my muddled mind before he spoke again.

"Bella do you need anything? Are you hungry?"

I laid there staring at him not speaking until my neck got sore from the position. I grimaced again. "Can you help me turn over?"

He was already standing so he took a step closer to my bed and gingerly helped me turn my body around to face him. The back of the gown which was open from the waist up, flapped open.

"Shit, Bella." He cringed shaking his head slightly, a look of confusion on his face as he stared at my back.

"Edward, what…oh." The bruises. I realized there were probably bruises covering my back from being thrown in the van and then falling out of it.

Edward continued staring until he finally reached around me, pulling the flaps together. "I knew they were there…I just hadn't seen them yet."

I nodded slightly then raised my left eyebrow. "I'm going to be fine you know. Thanks to you." My mouth curled into a small smile which I quickly relaxed due to my dry lips cracking.

"Edward, do you have any lip balm. My lips hurt."

Items in his jeans jingled as he dug around his side right pocket, pulling out a tube of Chapstick. When I reached for it he held it back.

"Let me do it ok?"

My brown creased in confusion. "Why?"

His eyes darted to my arms then back to my face. "The IV, the cuts, the bruises on your arms, the sprain…I don't want you moving around too much. Even if it seems like it's a small movement, it might hurt you right now and I don't want to see you in anymore pain."

I nodded silently and watched while he pulled the cap off the tube laying on the table by the bed. Instead of applying it directly to my parched lips, he rubbed a bit on his forefinger. When he saw me looking at him, with a question in my eyes, he grinned at me.

"The heat from fingers will help it absorb better."

"Ah."

He leaned in. "Try to relax your lips."

Then I felt him smearing the ointment on my lips. He rubbed it in gently first on my top lip then my bottom. I kept my eyes on his the entire time, willing him to look at me but he kept his eyes focused on my lips the entire time. Then he pulled away.

"Better?"

I smacked my lips to test. "Yea, their good. Thank you." He sat back down in the chair and reached for my hand lacing his fingers with mine.

I gazed at our interlaced hands curiously before diverting my gaze back to his face. "Edward, I want to thank you again. I'd probably be dead if it weren't for you."

I heard his teeth snap together but couldn't see his face since he would only stare at our hands.

"Bella this is my fault." He spoke so softly that I could barely make it out.

"What? What are you talking about? None of this is in any way your fault. How could you even think that?" The shock was evident in my hoarse voice. I just couldn't believe what came out of his mouth.

Finally raising his eyes to look at me, I saw that there was moisture there. No, this wasn't right at all.

"How could you think that any of this is your fault?"

"Bella, I shouldn't have let you out of my sight."

"You have got to be kidding me!" I was exasperated. Why on earth would he and Alice be blaming themselves? This was James' fault.

"Edward you want to know what would have happened if you didn't find me? James would have found me in the parking lot. He probably would've beaten me again before dragging me back to the goddamn van where he would've finished ripping my clothes off before forcing himself inside me taking something that should never be stolen from anyone. Do you understand me Edward? Do you?"

His jaw wavered but he kept his eyes trained on our hands. Aside from the beeps of the machines, all I could hear was his heavy breathing.

My eyes closed and I took two deep breaths before continuing. "I need for the both of you to stop blaming yourselves for something that was not your fault. I'm gonna tell you the same thing I told Alice. I'm not ok right now but I will be. Alright? This is not going to break me. He has not ruined my life. He hasn't."

The last bit of my speech was more for me than Edward. I needed to believe that I was going to be alright, that he hadn't ruined things for me. I couldn't allow him to have that control over me.

All the while, Edward just held onto my hand, his brow furrowed lips taut.

"How long have you been here anyway?"

"Ah, I never left."

My eyebrows went up in surprise.

"Say what? Dude, I know I've been here all day and night. You didn't have to stay. I know you're probably super busy with school about to start and all..."

"Hey," he interrupted. "I'm told you before, I'm not going anywhere."

"I know, but you said that when I was pretty much out of it. I'm not going to hold you to that ."

"Bella, I want you to hold me to that."


End file.
